Faithful

Fail Us Not


Fail Us Not from Steven Potaczek on Vimeo.

Marriage

John Piper post:  Why Say That Marriage Is Like Christ and the Church?

When I asked Noël if there was anything she wanted me to say about marriage, she said, “You cannot say too often that marriage is a model of Christ and the church.”
I think she is right and there are at least three reasons:

1. It lifts marriage out of sordid sitcom images and gives it the magnificent meaning God meant it to have.
2. It gives marriage a solid basis in grace, since Christ obtained and sustains his bride by grace alone.
3. It shows that the husband’s headship and the wife’s submission are crucial and crucified. That is, they are woven into the very meaning of marriage as a display of Christ and the church, but they are both defined by Christ’s self-denying work on the cross so that pride and slavishness are cancelled.

Adapted from the 2007 sermon "Marriage: God's Showcase of Covenant-Keeping Grace."

 

All the Paths

All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness,
   for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

Psalm 25:10

Biblical Realism

Mark Batterson post:  God Is For You

"If God is for us then who can be against us?"

Romans 8:31

You + God = a majority. If God is on your side, there is nothing you cannot overcome. Why? Because we are more than conquerors through Christ. That is reality. That isn't optimism. It's biblical realism.

If you know that God is for you, then no challenge is too great, no problem is too big, no obstacle cannot be overcome. But most of us doubt this fundamental truth. And I believe it's one of our root spiritual problems. We aren't sure if God is really for us or against us because we allow the guilt we feel over sins committed to infect our feelings. We think God feels about us the way we feel about ourselves! We need to sanctify our feelings.

You need to settle this once and for all. God is for you. God is on your side. God is in your corner. His intentions toward you are always good. Here's an amazing promise in Psalm 84:11:

"No good thing will the Lord withhold from those who do what is right."

Expectation and Yearning

First Sunday of Advent (Year C):  Thematic

God of justice and peace,
from the heavens you rain down mercy and kindness,
that all on earth may stand in awe and wonder
before your marvelous deeds.
Raise our heads in expectation,
that we may yearn for the coming day of the Lord
and stand without blame before your Son, Jesus Christ,
who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

Give Thanks .. Gracious and Merciful

Praise the LORD!I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart,
   in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
Great are the works of the LORD,
    studied by all who delight in them.
Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
   and his righteousness endures forever.
He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
   the LORD is gracious and merciful.

Psalm 111:1-4

Thankfulness

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. [ESV]

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. [The Message]

Colossians 3:15

Sentness

Excerpt from Alan Hirsch:  No Disciples, No Mission | Catalyst

Having been believers and ministers for over 25 years now has given Debs and I an appreciation for just how hard it is to be an authentic follower of our Lord and Savior. To be an authentically radical disciple requires a relentless evaluation of life’s priorities and concerns—together with an ongoing, rigorous, critique of our culture—to ensure we are not adopting values that subvert the very life and message we are called to live out. For true followers of Jesus, discipleship is not simply the first step toward a promising career of being a Christian, rather it is itself the fulfillment of our destiny. So, Debs and I have decided to write a book on what we call “missional discipleship.” Appropriately called Untamed, it is meant to be a penetrating look into the things that keep us from becoming all we were made to be and has many practical suggestions about how to become wild followers of Jesus again.

The truth is that discipleship, at least the way the Bible understands it, cannot be limited to a personal exercise in personal spirituality. There are much greater, perhaps even global, consequences at stake in our becoming more like Jesus. So much so that we have actually come to believe that discipleship is a frontier issue for the people of God at this time in history. Why? Because most commentators would now agree that the Western Church, because of its deep embedding into the prevailing consumerist culture, has all but lost the art of discipleship. Reggie McNeal has concluded that “church culture in North America is now a vestige of the original [Christian] movement, an institutional expression of religion that is in part a civil religion and in part a club where religious people can hang out with other people whose politics, worldview, and lifestyle match theirs.”

If this is indeed the case, we should be clear that this is not what the church is called to be, and is, in fact, directly caused by a failure in discipleship and disciple-making. And it will have to be addressed if we are to give faithful witness to our century. Therefore, rediscovering what it means to radically follow Jesus is now an area of strategic—and definitely missional—concern. To recover mission we are going to have to take discipleship seriously again, but the reverse is also true; to rediscover discipleship we are also going to have to take mission seriously. We cannot be true disciples without also being missionaries (sent ones) to our worlds.

The gospel is the power of God for the salvation of the world (Rom. 1:16), and God wants to redeem the broken and lost world around us and through us. Our lives, individual and corporate, play a vital role in the unfolding of the grand purposes of God. The gospel cannot be limited to being about my personal healing and wholeness, but rather extends in and through my salvation to the salvation of the world. To fail in discipleship and disciple-making is therefore to fail in the primary mission (or “sentness”) of the church. And it does not take a genius to realize that we have all but lost the art of disciple-making in the contemporary Western church. No wonder Dallas Willard calls the systematic non-discipleship of the Western Church “the great omission” in his book by that name.

...

Extravagant Generosity

Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It's way over our heads. We'll never figure it out.

   Is there anyone around who can explain God?
   Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?
   Anyone who has done him such a huge favor
      that God has to ask his advice?

   Everything comes from him;
   Everything happens through him;
   Everything ends up in him.
   Always glory! Always praise!
      Yes. Yes. Yes.

Romans 11: 33-36 [The Message]

Trust

LifeToday Devotional

Faith, Risk and Diving Boards
by Dave Hackbarth

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous.
Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your
God will be with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9, NIV)

“It’s not possible,” I thought as I peered over the edge of the diving board. My heart beat wildly in my chest and my knees felt more like jelly than bone and muscle.

“I have no idea why on earth anyone would want to do this! What’s wrong with people?” My thoughts were doing a great job at giving me the courage to take that risk and jump. If I could get them to shut up for five seconds, I just might do it.

I slowly moved up toward the edge again and looked down on my mom, who was encouraging me to jump. But she didn’t see what I saw: the water. It looked like solid glass or transparent concrete. I swear a mysterious breeze started to blow and shake the diving board. Did I mention this was an indoor pool?

I don’t remember how old I was at that point in my childhood, but I do remember the timidity and fear that seized me as I failed to bravely conquer that diving board. I don’t really think it was the diving board or swimming or scaling heights that was at stake. It was my trust.

Earlier this year, I attended a leadership conference at my home church, Gateway Church in Austin, Texas. Neil Cole delivered most of the content for the weekend, which focused on empowering and equipping organic leaders . On the second day of the conference, I vividly recall him saying, “If you don’t have a good story, it’s because you’re not taking enough risk.”

That statement echoed throughout the auditorium. I immediately recalled months earlier asking God to give me opportunities to take risk and have faith without any solid proof or clarity. No more pillars of fire by day or writing on the wall or dew-soaked fleeces. Just faith.

Then I started reading Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning as part of my residency at Gateway and I was again hit with this picture of what it means to trust God:

faith + hope = trust

I have always understood the faith part. It is essential to knowing God through Jesus. But what about the hope part? Have I really trusted God?

These questions bombarded my soul in an all-out assault on my heart. I wrestled with the answers and found more questions. I reviewed my life and saw multiple times where faith was evident and hope was somewhat present.

To be honest, hope in what has yet to happen often seems so insubstantial and elusive. I recalled instances of having hope, but they seemed to only appear in the storms of life when uncertainty surrounded me. It was as if the valleys of life offered more hope than the hills and peaks. You may know exactly what I am talking about.

The Bible offers us story after story to illustrate this, but I think that we often gloss over the reality of hope in the midst of a faith story. One story that came to mind during the war between my soul and heart was that of Peter’s hike on water. Let’s set the scene…

The disciples, following Jesus’ orders, are crossing the lake by boat while Jesus seeks several hours of solitude. Trouble arrives in the form of a squall and treacherous waters. These seasoned fishermen are having a hard time getting to the other shore, indicating the severity of the storm. (Matthew 14:22-24)

Life is like that, isn’t it? The storms of life hit us and, though we’ve been through several storms, each one can rock our world. We struggle to gain control, just as the disciples were struggling with their boat.

Jesus, now done with his solitude, sees that the disciples are in a bit of trouble and far from land. So, he charters a boat to sail to their rescue. Right?

No. Jesus strolls out into open waters, straight into the tempest! The disciples see Jesus, assume he is a ghost and immediately panic.

“But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.’
 ‘Lord, if it's you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’
 ‘Come,’ he said.” (Matthew 14:26-29a, NIV)

Did you notice a subtle, but important, element to this story? The disciples knew Jesus’ voice! They had enough faith that they knew that Jesus would save them. After all, the last time this sort of thing happened Jesus’ words alone calmed the storm. (Matthew 8:23-27)

Even more than having the storm calmed, Peter immediately wanted to be like Jesus. He wanted to do what he saw his master, his teacher, his mentor doing. Peter initiated and Jesus approved. Faith is like that because it always takes action. Faith always takes initiative.

“Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.” (Matthew 14:29b, NIV)

I almost wish the story ended there. What a great Hollywood ending! Fortunately for us, it does not.

“But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’ And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”
(Matthew 14:30-33, NIV)

Most of the time when I read this story, I criticize Peter for his lack of faith. Think about it. Peter just saw Jesus feed 5,000 people with only 5 loaves and 2 fish!

How many times do we think something like, “If Jesus was right in front of me, I would have done it.” When I read the Bible, I am always the one who obeys or the one who loves well or the one who is daring and risky. How about you?

Truthfully, I am rarely that person. The reality of my life is more akin to the other disciples than Peter. Notice I said “other disciples.” In this story, they are only referred to as “those who were in the boat.” They aren’t even mentioned by name! That would have been me. I would not have even had the intestinal fortitude to try getting out of the boat. I would have most likely been the wanna-be protégé sitting near the edge of the boat with one hand firmly gripping the center of the boat, pretending to be fearless. Then Peter gets all hopped-up on seeing Jesus and gets all heroic.

Even Peter’s lack of faith was more faith than the rest of the disciples. In that moment, Peter was not only exercising his faith by taking initiative, but all of his hope was in Jesus. He trusted Jesus with his life. Just look at the evidence. When Peter began to sink, who did he call out to? Who did he trust to save him? His faith, combined with hope, allowed him to trust that Jesus could do what Peter was incapable of doing for himself. He trusted Jesus to save him.

This leads us back to my childhood diving-board experience. In life, I have had many diving-board opportunities. Heroic moments where my life could have been defined by great trust in Jesus. Divine moments that could have taken my comfortable life and propelled me into a life of unleashed faith. Too often, I chose the lesser life. I chose not to risk; not to trust.

What about you?

This Week
How is God asking you to trust in Him through your struggles or storms? What must you do to choose the heroic life Jesus called you to live, like Peter? What can you do at work or in your neighborhood to exercise your faith?

Prayer
“Jesus, forgive me for choosing the comfortable, lesser life by not fully trusting in you. Give me the strength I need to respond to your Spirit, not with timidity, but with heroic trust. Help me step out of the boat. Amen.”

Advent

Excerpts from Ed Stetzer post:  Advent Without the Conspiracy on SermonCentral

...

The very word "advent" essentially means the arrival of something. So, as we celebrate Christmas, we supposedly celebrate the arrival of God into human form. The Incarnation is a moment to savor. All of our presents and lights and parties ought to have a better meaning. But usually, they don't. So, in a bid to create a more relevant/helpful/meaningful advent season, the church of late has sought to delineate itself from the commercialization of our country's Christmas culture. Oddly enough, we have done so by simply offering Christianized versions of what they were already doing—Christmas dinners, Christmas plays, Christmas musicals, and Christmas events in every size and shape. But alas, we have done no better than my neighbor. The church has cluttered the advent season with our own set of lawn décor.

Sure, our event planning seems more spiritual than the guy who wants his house to be seen from outer space. And yes, our events are done so with the façade of telling people the ubiquitous "reason for the season." (Am I supposed to capitalize "reason"? I don't know any more.) But are we bringing anyone closer to understanding the gospel? I fear we are only adding more decorations onto the already crowded front lawn of culture.
...

We are seeing a much-needed return to the simplicity of the Gospel and its power to bring transformation. The advent season needs no décor, conspiracy, or sales pitch. It needs simplicity.  It needs a gospel simply proclaimed and the work of Jesus simply done.

As you and your church move into this advent season, allow me to make some suggestions toward simplicity that may just help present a season that is filled with more advent than conspiracy.

Be obvious. We have grown far too comfortable with the bait-and-switch mentality reserved for the lowest form of salesmanship. "Come for a relaxing evening of music." But we really mean, "Come for dinner so we can ambush you with something vaguely spiritual."
...

Live in the experience of the Incarnation. It only happened once. So enjoy thinking and talking and living about it. John 1:14 is one of the high-water marks of scripture about the Incarnation. It is paraphrased by The Message as:

"The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish."

I love that—"moved into the neighborhood." Jesus came to live among us, work like us, experience life like us. His experience is one for us to both revere and revel in.
Our advent celebrations should find their embodiment in work similar to His. He spoke the truth—so should we. He cared for the outcast—so should we. He sacrificed personally—so should we. It is not complicated to emulate a living example.

...

Be native. Everyone feels a bit of nostalgia at this time of the year, but it is only a fleeting glance at the past. The advent season should be lived in the present, especially among those who live in the now of their everyday lives.

I often encourage pastors to ask themselves and their congregation, "What year is it here?" It is intended to provoke the thought of how well a congregation is connecting with their community. After all, as soon as we step off of our church campuses, it is 2009, no matter how we act inside our buildings.

During the advent season, we ask everyone to take a backward glance of almost two millennia. But do you know what most people want to know? How does that little boy born in a barn change your life right now? They are waiting to hear us talk about the gospel's power in contemporary terms.

Your coworkers and neighbors harbor a silent but deep hope that one of their own (you) is telling the truth about this faith they've heard about. So be the native that delivers the message to the rest of your tribe.
...

His Grace

Christine Wyrtzen devotional

HOW OFTEN I FORFEIT FAVOR

I entreat your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise.  Psalm 119:58

There are many who feel that God's favor is owed to them.  Perhaps this describes the majority of God's creation.  They believe that they do more good than bad.  Because of how that set of scales reads, they believe that God owes them pleasure and ease.

This psalmist, whoever he is, begs for God's favor.  He knows that even though He follows God, loves the Torah, and attempts to live a life that honors God, he does plenty of things every day to forfeit God's favor.  On this day, He asks God to consider pouring out His favor once again on his life.

No matter how sincere my heart was yesterday to honor Christ through my life, I failed to do it perfectly.  My sin grieved God and without His grace and mercy, there were grounds for God to withdraw the warmth of His smile from my shoulders.  He didn't - because of Christ.  He didn't - because of His Son's blood sacrifice.

Entitlement is a nasty spiritual disease.  It's unbecoming to children here on earth who live with their hand out.  How many parents have sacrificed for their son or daughter only to see their love spurned with indignant demand.  "Ungrateful!", that parent mutters under their breath in disappointment.

Entitlement is even more profound when God's children hold out their hand, feel entitled to the sacrifice Jesus made and the blessings of their inheritance in Christ, and give no thought to the graciousness of God who gives it all despite their unworthiness.  Oh, may my life be marked with humility and gratitude.  Anything good that He gives me is due to His grace, not my goodness. 

When I see signs of Your favor, I take in the gift with prayers of thanksgiving.  Forgive me for when I've been an ungrateful child.  Amen

God's Fellow Workers - But Only God

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. [ESV]

Who do you think Paul is, anyway? Or Apollos, for that matter? Servants, both of us—servants who waited on you as you gradually learned to entrust your lives to our mutual Master. We each carried out our servant assignment. I planted the seed, Apollos watered the plants, but God made you grow. It's not the one who plants or the one who waters who is at the center of this process but God, who makes things grow. Planting and watering are menial servant jobs at minimum wages. What makes them worth doing is the God we are serving. You happen to be God's field in which we are working.  [The Message]

1 Corinthians 3:5-9

Your Voice

Mark Batterson post:  Unique Voiceprint

There never has been and never will be anyone like you. But that isn't a testament to you. It's a testament to the God who created you absolutely unique.

All of creation is singing a worship chorus to God. And it's not just the meadow lark with its 300 notes or the nightingale finch with its 24 songs. According to the German physicist and pianist, Arnold Summerfield, a hydrogen atom emits 100 frequencies which makes it more complex musically than a grand piano which emits 88 frequencies.

For what its worth, Pythagoras said: "A stone is frozen music." Very interesting in light of what Jesus said: "If you remain silent the stones will cry out."

My point? All of creation is singing a unique song to the Creator. And you are part of that universal chorus. No one can worship God FOR you or LIKE you. God has given you a unique voiceprint. There are millions of people praying and worshiping God in every language all the time. But your voiceprint is unique. Like a parent who knows His child's unique cry or scream or laugh, God knows your voice. He hears your voice. The Heavenly Father loves your voice.

Steadfast Love Upon Us

Our soul waits for the LORD;
   he is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
   because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,
   even as we hope in you.

Psalm 33:20-22

Capture Me With Grace

Newsong "Rescue"

Full

And one called to another and said:

    "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!"

Isaiah 6:3

Purpose

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

THE SIGNIFICANT DOMINION
 
Genesis 1:26
Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth

In the original creation, Adam didn't search for significance; he was significant. He was given rule over all His creatures. Was Satan on the scene at creation? Yes. Was he the god of this world at that time? Not at all. Who had the dominion in the garden? Under the authority of God, Adam did, that is until Satan usurped his dominion when Adam and Eve fell. That's when Satan became the god of this world.

Do you realize that the significant dominion Adam exercised before the Fall has been restored to you as a Christian? That's part of your inheritance in Christ. Satan has no authority over you, even though he will try to deceive you into believing that he has. Because of your position in Christ, you have authority over him. You are seated with Christ in the heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6).

First John 3:8 says, "The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil." The whole plan of God is to restore fallen humanity and establish the kingdom of God where Satan now reigns. This work of God is not just for our personal victory but for all of creation. "For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will also be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Romans 8:19-21).

Prayer:

Thank You, Lord, that I am part of Your redemptive plan. Show me my responsibility so I may live a life of purpose.

Owning Scripture

From an email.  Seemed related to yesterday's class discussion:

A few thoughts on OWNING GOD’S WORD:
      
      The book of Hebrews has historically been referred to as the Book of Faith, and in Chapter 4, verse 12, the writer says:  “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit and of jonts and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

    The writer goes on to say that nothing is hidden from God’s eyes; that we have a great High Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and that we should come boldly to the throne of grace and there obtain mercy and grace in time of need.

       It occurs to me that in order to incorporate this living power, we must “own it.”  Let me explain.  In the realm of music, whether instrumental or vocal, to perform correctly, one must “own” the song.  For instance, a vocalist singing to a live audience should not carry on stage a copy of the words; it would be a hindrance and a distraction.  Therefore, the song must be so committed to memory, so familiar to the singer, that he or she “owns” it.  The song can then be sung confidently anytime and any place.

       In like manner, if we are to be effective witnesses for Jesus Christ, we must be so familiar with scripture that we can share it with others without referring immediately to the Bible, as one may not always be available.  Oh, I don’t think it’s necessary to memorize every jot and tittle, but an accurate understanding of pertinent passages and what they mean is imperative.  As a singer must own a song, we as Christians must “own” scripture in such a way that it is readily available to us because of our familiarity with it.  After all, “the word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword,”and we must proclaim it boldly.  Don’t you agree?

                                                                                                Harvill here…11-22-02

Great Commandment

Here is a web site introducing a new book.